Suicide rates for UK men are a ‘national catastrophe’, says Prince William

Prince William has called the prevalence of male suicide in the UK a “national catastrophe” in a radio appearance in which he opened up about his approaches to dealing with difficult emotions.William told a special episode of Radio 1’s Life Hacks that “we need more male role models” to talk about their mental health publicly, to help other men do the same and make open discussions “second nature to us all”.During the panel discussion about male suicide with host Greg James, which will air at 8pm on Wednesday, William reflected on his own feelings, saying: “I take a long time trying to understand my emotions and why I feel like I do, and I feel like that’s a really important process to do every now and again, to check in with yourself and work out why you’re feeling like you do.“Sometimes there’s an obvious explanation, sometimes there isn’t. I think that idea that mental health crisis is temporary [is important] – you can have a strong mental health crisis moment but it will pass.”'Learn to love yourself': Prince William talks about mental health on Radio 1’s Life Hacks – videoAccording to the Office for National Statistics, suicide was the leading cause of death among young people aged 20 to 34 in England and Wales in 2024.Mental health and suicide are topics that William has frequently spoken about, and his Royal Foundation is contributing £1m to develop a National Suicide Prevention Network.He encouraged listeners to “learn to love yourself and understand yourself”, and praised support from mental health charities as “that little stepping stone” to get people through difficult moments.William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, visiting a mental health charity supporting young adults across Merseyside in 2023. Photograph: WPA/Getty ImagesHe added: “And if we talk about that more, and educate people more, then hopefully the idea of suicide keeps being pushed further and further away. Because you know that tomorrow, you might wake up and you might feel very different.”When asked if his children talked openly about their feelings, he jokingly said: “Sometimes too much. I get all the details, which I love; it’s amazing.”The panel also featured the rapper Professor Green, whose real name is Stephen Manderson. He has campaigned on mental health for years and previously spoke in a BBC documentary, Suicide and Me, about losing his father to suicide.The rapper said he wanted to remind people “that these conversations are important to have and it’s OK to have them”.“I’ve got a little boy and I hate to think of him growing up in a world where he doesn’t have a circle of friends that he knows he can go to, or services that he knows he can access if in a time of need, at a time when he perhaps doesn’t have me,” he said.Professor Green, who is a supporter of the suicide prevention charity Calm, said he felt it was “incredibly important” to have the support of Prince William, “not least of all because of the openness that he shows up with, which I don’t think people would necessarily expect”.“But he’s obviously gone through his own life of suffering and experience and things he’s seen first-hand,” he said. “And I just think it enables us to shine such a light on something that people will otherwise just avoid.”